The Perfect Storm
by Beaglicious
Summary: She wasn't scared of storms anymore. Spoilers for 2x6, Hurricane Anthony and 3x1, Lost Son. SC.


The Perfect Storm

Disclaimer: Not mine, just borrowing them.

A/N: Written in response to the prompt challenge from the MiamiFicTalk group at Yahoo.

Prompt: 011 – Storm.

Spoilers: 2x6 – Hurricane Anthony, 3x1 – Lost Son

Summary: She wasn't scared of storms anymore. SC.

_Present: Early December 2004_

Not two days after the National Hurricane Center called an official end to the 2004 hurricane season amidst many cheers and much back-slapping, the formerly jovial weather forecasters interrupted mid-day programming with stoic faces and grave voices to report that a storm had been spotted in the Atlantic. They were quick to assure their loyal viewers that, for now, the weather system was being tentatively classified only as a tropical depression. Within 24 hours, the depression had a name and had been upgraded to a tropical storm. The battered Miami populace shrugged, and drug out the recently stashed storm supplies. By now, they knew the routine by heart.

On the day the rains were scheduled to hit Miami, Calleigh was on her way back to the lab to analyze some ballistics evidence when the sight of several officers standing around a television caught her attention. One of the officers saw Calleigh and motioned her over.

"They're saying that the storm's going to hit anytime now. Look at how dark the sky is." He stepped sideways to allow Calleigh an unrestricted view of the small screen.

Calleigh moved closer, determined not to let her fear show through. She was terrified of storms, but it was a secret that she had confessed to only one person – and he was gone.

The group watched as the newscaster, clothed in a yellow rain slicker and soaked through, yelled into the microphone while attempting to keep the hood of her jacket on her head. Behind her, Calleigh could barely make out the deserted Miami beach and beyond it, the churning Miami sea.

Despite the warmth generated by the group crowded around the television, Calleigh shivered. She'd been out in the rain early that morning, helping the night shift to collect the last bits of evidence for a case before the runoff washed everything away. Although she'd been back in the lab and changed into dry clothes by nine am, the chill from the rain, along with her concern about the upcoming storm, continued to seep through her bones, leaving her feeling cold and out of sorts.

The floor began to vibrate then, and Calleigh turned to watch as the hurricane shutters were lowered over the larger glass windows of the building. It was a little disconcerting to watch as the metal covers blocked out all traces of the dark Miami sky, but it was also reassuring. She would be safe here.

Calleigh hated that she was scared of storms, especially since she couldn't remember the inciting incident. Her mother had finally told her a few years back that when she was three, she'd been left in the car during a particularly nasty thunderstorm, her parents too drunk to realize that their child was missing. They'd found her several hours later, her eyes swollen from tears and her face red and splotchy from crying. The memory had stuck with her subconscious into adulthood, and no amount of rational thinking could dislodge it.

Calleigh politely murmured her goodbyes and headed down towards the morgue. Alexx was about to start a post for one of her cases, but that wasn't her only reason for escaping there. In the morgue, one level underground and far away from any windows,

Calleigh could forget all about the inclement weather outside. And she didn't have to pretend to be strong either, not when she was alone with Alexx. Her seemingly endless reserve of fortitude was running low, sapped not only by the storm but by Tim's death earlier that year. She'd maintained her dignity, but the mounting pressure of burying her true emotions was slowly breaking her. Only Alexx knew how much Tim's death truly pained her, and so as Calleigh stood across the autopsy table, Alexx looked up at her and asked, "How are you doing, Sugar?"

Calleigh sighed. "About the same, I guess. As long as it's just me and Eric, everything seems okay, like Tim's just stepped out or something. But when Ryan walks in the room, all I can think about is how Tim's gone and never coming back." Her voice was missing its usual cheer.

"I'm so sorry, Sugar. I know you and Timmy were close."

Calleigh smiled sadly. Their 'closeness' had begun a year earlier, during the first hurricane that Miami had faced that year – Anthony.

_One Year Earlier: November 2003_

Calleigh was on her way back to ballistics when she came across Tim in the hallway and stopped, needing an update on the case's progress. Although the hurricane had come and gone, she was still jumpy, and even her brightest smile couldn't hide that fact from Tim. He was just about to ask her if she was okay when a peal of thunder rocked the crime lab, and Calleigh jumped in surprise. Without warning and most unexpectedly, Tim pulled Calleigh to him and held her tightly.

"It's going to be okay, Cal," he told her, rubbing her back reassuringly.

Although shocked at this spontaneous emotional display from the normally reserved Tim, Calleigh didn't question the comfort he offered. Instead, she exploited the opportunity and snuggled up again Tim's lean, warm body, knowing – believing - that she was secure in his embrace. The thunder cracked again, louder this time, and although she barely flinched, Tim's arms tightened around her.

For Calleigh, the moment was a culmination of a fantasy she'd been cultivating for quite some time. She'd been in Miami for only a few months before losing her heart to Tim, and she had long since given up trying to get it back. Each day, each case she worked with him, only intensified her feelings. There were days when she could hardly stand to be in the same room with him, so strong was her need to touch him – and to have him touch her. Even now she kept her arms pressed firmly against her sides with her hands clenched in tight fists, lest she allow her arms to return Tim's embrace, knowing that she would be unable to keep her hands from running through his hair or tracing the outline of his jaw.

Calleigh had never pursued her feelings for Tim, held back not only by the fact that he was her co-worker but also by the painful realization that he just wasn't that into her. Although they had a good working relationship, Calleigh knew that Tim didn't consider them to be friends, and she'd caught him rolling his eyes at her more than once. It was with a heavy heart that Calleigh acknowledged that this might be the one and only chance she'd have to be in Tim's arms, and so she closed her eyes and savored the experience, taking detailed notes about the way he smelled, the intensity of the heat that radiated from his chest, the feel of his hands running up and down her back, the gravely sound his voice made just beyond her ear, the way their bodies melded together perfectly. The moment was even better than she'd imagined – and Calleigh had a very vivid imagination.

Tim had been nearly as surprised as Calleigh when he'd pulled her into his arms. While he was still trying to get his head wrapped around that action, his hands went ahead and began rubbing her back, and his mouth whispered soothing words into her ear. Tim had always held Calleigh at arm's length, but that didn't mean he didn't care for her, although he knew she thought otherwise. He kept nearly everyone in his life at a distance, but only Calleigh took it personally. She was always so strong, so in control, and to see her lose that control was unnerving, so much so that Tim's body responded without waiting for his brain to catch up.

Tim felt Calleigh's tense frame finally relax against him. She seemed so tiny all of a sudden, and he realized that her tough attitude disguised her petite form well. With that toughness now stripped away, she seemed as if she would just blow away if he let her go, and if he could have pulled her any closer to him, he would have.

The time frame for a friendly hug came and went, but neither Tim nor Calleigh moved. Calleigh was too wrapped up in relishing the moment, and Tim was so lost in his thoughts about why he was doing what he was doing that time slipped away from him as well. It wasn't until they heard footsteps in the corridor that they sprung away from each other. Calleigh buried herself in her notes, her long blonde hair falling forward to cover her face, and Tim coughed before turning to stare out the window. A moment later one of the administrative staff came around the corner, smiled sweetly at both CSIs, and continued on her way. Calleigh and Tim watched her turn right at the end of the hallway, and they were once again alone.

Tim cleared his throat and shoved his hands in his back pockets, his gaze cast downward. Calleigh felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment and stared at the ceiling.

"Are you going to be okay?" Tim asked, forcing himself to raise his eyes and meet Calleigh's. She smiled briefly at him before focusing her eyes at a point over his shoulder.

"Yeah, I am. Thanks, Tim." Her voice was soft, and timid, not anything at all like he was used to.

Tim grunted, anxious to change the subject. He was beginning to feel suffocated, as if he couldn't get away from Calleigh soon enough. His brain was finally realizing what his body had done, and his neurons were about to short-circuit with the information. He'd hugged Calleigh. No, it had been more than a hug. A hug was a quick action, two bodies joining together briefly, pulling away almost before contact was made. What he'd done went far beyond that. He'd_ held_ Calleigh, had embraced her, had taken her in his arms as though she were his lover. Worst of all, he hadn't minded – not one bit.

"I better get back to the lab," he said, tripping over a few of his words in his haste to spit them out.

"Yeah, me too," Calleigh agreed. The pair made eye contact once more, smiled nervously, and then headed in opposite directions, their minds working overtime, trying to process what had just happened and trying to come up with any conclusion other than the obvious.

It had taken them a while to work past their issues and insecurities, to acknowledge what had happened, but that day had been the start of something precious between them, like the planting of a seed. Their love didn't bloom overnight, full and ripe with the dawn's morning dew. Instead, it gathered its forces, resting and waiting until a second encounter finally coaxed it into blooming. Although slow to sprout, it grew quickly, blossoming and branching and spreading its vines far and wide. Calleigh saw their love as perennial, something that would continue to blossom year after year into the unforeseeable future. It was what Tim came to eventually want as well, but by that time he knew that their love, like the marigold which sprouts, blooms and is enjoyed for only a short while before dying, was not meant to last.

_Early September, 2004_

"I have to go away for awhile, Cal," Tim said suddenly one night. They were on Calleigh's couch watching a movie, Calleigh's back pressed to Tim's chest. His arms were wrapped loosely around her waist, and he'd been absently fiddling with the hemline of her shirt, debating on whether the movie was worth finishing.

"What are you talking about?" Calleigh asked, twisting around in his arms to look at him.

Tim spun Calleigh back around and pulled her tight against him. He couldn't look at her face, not now. If he did, he'd never be able to say what he needed to say. "I'm leaving Miami, going undercover. I need you to know that."

"Okay," Calleigh answered, her tone still light. Her thoughts were elsewhere, combing their files for any case that would warrant a UC investigation. "For how long?"

Tim took a deep breath and spoke, willing his voice not to shake. "I won't be coming back to Miami - ever," he said, squeezing his eyes shut. What had he been thinking? Three months ago he'd been itching to get out of Miami, and now that he had a reason to stay he had no choice but to leave. He'd wanted the no-strings-attached lifestyle that going undercover necessitated. As a UC, he could trust no one, befriend no one. He wasn't big on relationships, professional, friendly or otherwise, to begin with. He'd only let one person get close to him, and then that person had gone and died on him. After that, Tim shut himself away, reasoning that if he didn't get close to anyone, then it wouldn't hurt him when they left. It was a behavior he'd perfected – until Calleigh came along and knocked his walls down with all the vigor of an invading army.

"Oh," Calleigh said, her voice suddenly small and hollow as the news sunk in. Tim kept his grip on her waist tight, expecting her to fight him for release, but instead her body just went limp, offering him no resistance at all. It wasn't how he was expecting her to react, and that unnerved him, so he continued talking, the words falling out of his mouth in quick succession as he tried desperately tried to fill the silence.

"I'm so sorry, babe. I made this decision before we starting dating. That's why I told myself that I wasn't going to get involved with you, because I knew that I'd only end up hurting you." He laughed bitterly, pressing a quick kiss to Calleigh's cheek. "But you wouldn't give up, and eventually I couldn't fight what I felt for you. It was selfish of me, I know, and I've beat myself up a thousand times over it. But I wouldn't trade these last two months for anything in the world. Being with you, loving you – having you love me – has been the greatest gift ever given to me."

He paused, temporarily out of words and excuses, desperate for a reaction from Calleigh. Tears, anger or accusations, he was ready to face them all, but the one thing she presented him with was the one thing he couldn't handle – silence.

She was quiet for a long time, and the air around them thickened with tension. "When?" she asked finally, her voice tired and resigned.

Tim smiled, even though the conversation was anything but amusing. That was his Calleigh, choosing to focus on a practical matter when the personal one became too overwhelming. Tim shook his head, although she couldn't see him. "It's better if you don't know." What he didn't divulge was that he didn't know when either, only that it would be soon – too soon.

"Then why tell me at all, Tim? Why don't you just leave? Either way, you're going to break my heart." She tried to pull away from him then, her body tensing and drawing inward to protect herself, but it was too late. The damage to her heart had already been inflicted, and there was no surviving a wound this deep. Tim continued to hold her close, unwilling to release her, even as she pulled at his arms and demanded that he let her go.

Calleigh eventually stopped resisting. Tim's hold on her loosened, finally allowing her to turn around and face him. She buried her face in his chest, and crumpled his shirt in her fists, her hot tears soaking through the thin cotton. Tim continued to hold her, oddly fascinated at the scene before him. She was crying, had to be crying, because he could feel the dampness of her tears on his chest. But she was silent, not wailing, and her breathing was even, not ragged. She'd gone perfectly still as well, her body neither limp nor stiff, merely there, touching Tim, seeming to lean into him and pull away from him all at the same time. He'd never seen anyone cry that way before, but then, he'd never seen Calleigh cry, and imagined that very few people had. As he continued to study her, he wondered if it was possible that she might not even know how to cry.

Tim silently berated himself again for not turning Calleigh down earlier that summer when she'd ambushed him at Alexx's annual Fourth of July party. But he'd had a taste of perfection on that warm summer afternoon amidst the rose bushes, and it had been too sweet to resist. He was instantly addicted to Calleigh Duquesne, and now he was about to cut himself off cold turkey.

The last two months had been good, too good, which only meant that the pain for both of them now would be that much worse. Tim had wanted Calleigh, had needed her, and so he'd selfishly put himself ahead of her, knowing even then that he was leaving Miami, with the result that now he had to hurt the woman for whose safety he would gladly give his own life.

"I wanted you to know," he said when her tears slowed. "I couldn't disappear without you knowing the truth."

Calleigh sat up and pulled away from him then, and although her face was damp and her eyes slightly swollen, she was otherwise normal. When she finally spoke, her voice was firm, not hitching with lingering sobs.

"Like that's going to make it any different," Calleigh spat, her sorrow giving way to anger. "Either way, you're still leaving. And now it's going to be worse, because I'm going to know that it was your decision, your choice to go. How could you think that my knowing that would make me feel better?"

Tim leaned into Calleigh, eliminating the distance she'd put between them, and brushed her hair away from her neck, exposing its smooth expanse. Calleigh didn't flinch or pull away, and although her body was stiff and unyielding, Tim realized in that moment just how much she trusted him.

"Because," he murmured, dipping down to kiss her neck and run a trail of kisses along her jaw that was still wet with tears, "This doesn't have to be the end of us."

_Present_

Calleigh's phone vibrated on her hip. She looked down at her cell, the familiar symbol for a text message flashing impatiently. Calleigh hit a button and the message that appeared on the screen made her face go white. It was time. The moment she'd been simultaneously awaiting and dreading was now here. She had a decision to make, and even at this late hour she still wasn't sure what it would be.

"Everything okay?" Alexx asked, noticing Calleigh stiffen.

"I – I need to go. Will you be okay without me?" Calleigh stuck her phone back into the holder on her hip.

"Sure, baby. I have plenty of company." She gestured at the row of gurneys behind her.

"Thanks, Alexx," Calleigh said, surprising her with a hug. "Thank you so much for everything."

"No problem, Sugar," Alexx said, patting Calleigh's shoulder in a motherly manner.

Calleigh bid Alexx goodbye and walked quickly out towards the rear bay of the morgue where the bodies were delivered. It was quiet out here, almost too quiet. This entrance was claimed by the dead, and very few living persons passed through this way, uneager to join their ranks.

The air was thick and still, and the sky was a sickly gray. It wouldn't be long now until the hurricane hit. Calleigh looked up at the sky and shivered. Being out here now was pure madness. What she was contemplating doing next was even crazier.

Calleigh heard the distinctive rumble of a bike in the distance. Her heart began to beat faster, and her stomach twisted into a tight knot. She still had time to change her mind. She could run back inside, stay where she knew she was safe – and not only from the storm. She could remain in the life that she'd established for herself, and know that he would understand. Or she could go against every rational fiber in her being and give her heart free rein, jumping out into unknown territory with the ultimate certainty that the man who loved her would be there to catch her. Calleigh smiled, now confident. There never had been a decision to make, not really.

The rumbling grew louder, and a few moments later a bike pulled up. It was then that Calleigh ran, abandoning all decorum as she dashed down towards the bike and its rider. The biker's face was completely covered by his helmet and dark visor, but Calleigh didn't need to see his face to know who he was. She reached the bike, and opened her mouth to speak, but he put one hand on her lips and shook his head, handing her a helmet instead.

Calleigh wasted no time putting on the helmet and climbing on the back of the bike. As soon as she was settled, her arms wrapped tight around his waist and her body pressed up close against his, they took off, driving fast and hard away from the lab. Calleigh pressed a kiss between his shoulder blades, only then daring to whisper his name, "Tim." Her words were whipped away by the wind before they fully made it out of her mouth.

In a short while they were at her apartment. Tim didn't remove his helmet until they were safely indoors with the curtains drawn and the front door bolted. Calleigh wasted no time in welcoming him back, slipping her hands up under his shirt and feeling the knotted muscles of his back flex under her palms. She kissed his face – his eyes, his nose, his lips – anywhere and everywhere that he would let her.

"We don't have much time," Tim mumbled in between Calleigh's kisses, but she paid him no heed. They had all the time in the world now, and months of lost time to make up for as well.

Tim squirmed for a moment longer, then softly uttered a curse and pulled Calleigh to him, returning her kisses as fervently as she gave them.

It was only afterwards that Calleigh dared to speak. Curled up against Tim's side, the sheets resting haphazardly around their waists, she stroked his stubbled cheek and kissed him on the temple.

"You came back," she said simply, the awe clear in her voice.

"I told you I would," he said, rolling his head to the side to look at her.

"Why now?" she asked.

Tim smiled. "Because there's a storm brewing out in the ocean, and I knew my girl needed someone to hold her tight until it passed."

"You didn't have to wait for a storm to do that," she teased, pleased but not surprised that he'd remembered her aversion to lightening and thunder. Tim, it turned out, had an incredible memory, and over the course of their short relationship Calleigh had learned that he remembered nearly every detail about her life she'd ever shared with him.

As if on cue, a burst of lightening lit up the room, followed closely on its heels by rolling thunder. The wind howled and it began to rain again, the droplets being blown nearly horizontal as they crashed into the windows of Calleigh's apartment, pinging angrily against the panes. The lights flickered once, twice, and then the power failed.

Calleigh shrieked and buried her face in Tim's chest. Tim wrapped one arm tight around her and reached down with his free hand to pull the covers up to their chins. Calleigh burrowed deeper until only the top of her head was visible. Tim grinned, bit back a chuckle, and kissed Calleigh's head before sliding under the covers with her.

The storm continued to rage, but Calleigh's trembling quickly ceased. She was with Tim, wrapped tightly in his arms, and the fear she'd carried with her since childhood was slowly leaving her body.

Tim, sensing the change in Calleigh, kissed her softly on the lips. Calleigh hesitated only briefly before kissing him back, and Tim spent the better part of the next hour keeping Calleigh's mind – and body – occupied and off the storm. Afterwards, they fell asleep, drugged into somnolence by both physical and mental exhaustion. Tim's arms remained tight around Calleigh's form, pulling her to him fiercely even after they'd both fallen asleep. Storm or no storm, he didn't want to let her go.

It was several hours later when they woke, the sudden cessation of rain, lightening and thunder rousing them.

"It looks like the storm's blown through," Tim said, rising up on his elbows to peer out the window.

"It's amazing how quickly they come and go," Calleigh answered him, her voice muffled still under the covers. Tim took one last look out the window before pulling the covers down to Calleigh's chin.

"So why'd you really come back now?" Calleigh asked, amused at but not believing his earlier answer.

"The hurricane's got the Fed's GPS tracking system all messed up. They have no idea where I am right now, and it's my one chance to duck out under their noses. By the time they realize I'm missing, we'll both be long gone. They'll have to assume that I was killed by the hurricane. I don't think they're going to spend a lot of time looking for my body. I know we never really worked out the details of your disappearance, but…"

Calleigh nodded her head against Tim's chest. With all the excitement surrounding Tim's return, she'd forgotten that they were planning to deceive everyone they knew. The faces of her family and co-workers flashed before her. Could she really do this to them? Was being with Tim worth giving up everything and everyone else?

"Do you still want to go?" Tim asked, his face now serious. "You've had a while to think it over, and if you've changed your mind, I completely understand. But I need to know – now. We may not have another chance."

Calleigh squeezed her eyes shut. She had to break someone's heart, and the decision was proving more difficult than she'd imagined. If she stayed, she'd spare her family and co-workers. But staying also meant that she would break her own heart and likely Tim's as well. Hers, she could handle. It was the idea of letting down Tim after he'd risked everything to come back for her, as well as the still too-sharp memory of how lonely the last few months had been, that eventually made her mind up. "Let's go then," she said, sitting up and rummaging under the sheets for her clothes.

Tim had obviously been expecting her to decline, because he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back down on the bed, raining kisses all over her while she giggled. "I love you," he told her, over and over again. "I love you so much."

Not too long later, Calleigh pulled a small duffel bag out from the recesses of her coat closet. "This is it," she said, holding up the small bag. "I hope we're going someplace warm."

Tim smirked. "You've got me now, babe. I'll keep you warm, I promise." Calleigh rolled her eyes and chucked the bag at him.

They made their way downstairs then, and Calleigh stared out towards the direction of the beach and the now calm ocean while Tim packed her bag. "Ready?" he asked, pulling her out of her thoughts. "We need to be in Tampa by nightfall. I've got a buddy there who's got another bike stashed there for me – one that's not bugged by the feds."

"And where to after that?" Calleigh asked, swallowing back the last wave of doubt as she turned away from the sea.

Tim handed her a helmet and shrugged. "Mexico?"

"I do like margaritas," Calleigh said, earning a grin from Tim.

"And I like the idea of you in a bikini drinking one," he smirked.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows in a silent challenge before changing the subject. "You know, I'm not scared of storms anymore."

"Why's that?" Tim asked as he helped Calleigh climb on the bike.

"Because they always seem to bring you to me." Tim smiled, kissing her nose before closing her visor, and climbed on.

"Last chance," he said.

Calleigh shook her head no against his back, her arms tightening around his waist. "Okay then," Tim said, before turning over the bike's engine. The roar of the pipes drowned out any response Calleigh might have made.

As they drove away, the beach, Miami, and her entire life falling further and further into the distance, Calleigh found that she wasn't remembering all that she'd left behind. Instead, she could only think of what lay before her – a future with a million possible variables and only one constant – Tim. It wasn't a lot to go on, but for her it was more than enough.

The End


End file.
